Sometimes Attitude song

Sometimes you wake up
On the wrong side of bed
You knew someone will be
Hurt by what you said
It’s time to do something
To change the way
You’ll be a happier person
To be with..

[hum the rhythm]

It’s not that difficult
As it seems
Only a little patience
And a plan to go with
Add a little support
Here and there
You’ll see
Sunshine.. and all smiles..

notes: Sometimes Attitude is inspired by JW. Not tat she has lots of attitude.. just sometimes! ;P It's also the first time i used the macbook's garage software to create.. yup, just bought my very first macbook! ;-) and oh.. to give justice to JW.. she's actually one of my best mentee, excellent collegaue/co-worker & most trustworthy friend!! ;-) i wish her well in whatever she wants to do.. Blessings.

La Mer song in The Diving Bell & The Butterfly french movie

I like this movie though it can be disturbing.. makes me think abt my life.. Got to treasure my life..  The camera technique used is also very interesting - like seeing things thru the man's eye..

And i just loved this song coupled with the movie..  ;-)

La Mer - kewego
Song by Charles Trenet sung in French with ukulele accompanimen. Chanson Francais avec ukulele

Issue-based approach to strategy making

Issue-based approach to strategy making is less likely to produce innovative products and services. This is because it's based on existing competencies. It is suitable for solving existing issues, however. And usually in the space of operational excellence.

One possible way to break thru is to include competencies gap analysis & capabilities building into the process.. but still, it may not be good enough.

Another is to adapt the issue-based approach to opportunity-based approach. The technique is the same. In fact the competencies diagram can be shared or reused for both approaches.

An alternative and simple way to break thru innovation is to begin with a question - "What do our customers want or need?" Be truly customer-oriented. And not skills-oriented.

IPO - Ideas, People & Opportunity

I'm dreaming now.. i dreamed that i'm already a successful businessman and a reporter interviewed me. He asked "what's the secret of my success?".

I answered "IPO". ;-)

I stands for ideas. Without good, great, earth-shaking ideas there's nothing much to talk about. Not all business ideas must be earth-shaking, out of this world, however. We've all witness simple ideas implemented at the right time, right place can succeed too. Look at BreadTalk, Facebook, Google,.. They are simple ideas actually. It takes a different set of eyes to see the unobviously obvious. ;P
Not everyone can 'see' a good idea though. Great leaders are those who can identify ideas, especially different ideas that seem to oppose one another at first, and modify & made them into a better idea. Lastly, ideas must be implementable. Otherwise, it defeat the purpose of thinking about them in the first place.

P stands for people. Without good, talented people working on the idea, nothing will happen. And dont think you can just rely on your own ability. Possible but tough in today's business environment. And people is not just about those who works for you or on the project. There are other many people who will be supporting you too! Your family, spouse, friends, and not forgetting your financial assistance folks - investors, partners, suppliers,.. So, talent mgmt or people mgmt is paramount to your success. So, invest in building up your EQ today! ;-)

O stands for opportunity. The final ingredient must be opportunity. You must be given a chance to try things out. Or you wont know if it will work or not. Dont be afraid of failure or criticism. It also includes timing. If you roll out your product at the wrong time, you will be trouble too. Some products/services are ahead of its times too.. take note!

I think IPO are the key factors, in a nutshell, that determine my success. Manage them well and maybe you will succeed. That's the secret of my success.. Still dreaming ya.. ;-)

Stay positive @work

3 Ps & getting a life. Ref: Straits Times pg R32.

How do you counteract negativity in your workplan.

1st P - is it personal?
When your boss is in a bad mood & scolded you the whole morning.. When one of your seemingly neutral comments became the focal point of an argument, it may have nothing to do with you. They're just in bad mood and u happen to be there. When your boss comment abt the poor results, he may be talking abt the process or external factors beyond your control, and not abt your poor management skills.
In fact, in most cases, people are more worried about themselves and more interested about themselves than you. It's sad but true.

2nd P - is it permanent?
"This too shall pass" expression is so true! And "there's light at the end of the tunnel". It almost always happen. ;-)
Just look back at your life and you know that somehow you will just get out of a tight situation.
Like life itself, nothing stays permanent. So dont worry so much. All shall pass.

3rd P - is it the big picture?
"What's the worst scenarios?" ask yourself. In most or all cases, you wont die because of it. At most, you loose your job. That's all. And most of the time, it's not that bad afterall..

Get a life.
Work is not the only thing/task in life. Balance your life with work, friends, hobbies and family. Dont keep thinking about work all the time. I'm a victim of this too.. i always think abt my work.. so i'm still learning as well.. Have to keep reminding myself once in a while.. That's whu i'm writing it on my blog here.. ;-)

Manage Less, Inspire More

Give employees a chance to do their best

and they will look forward to working for you.

1. Adopt people focus culture.
Treat employees as most valuable assets.
Value their contributions.
Give them more responsibilities, autonomy & freedom.

2. Be a leader. Not a manager.
Micro managing doesnt make you a great leader.
Trust your people to do a good/excellent job.
Show them the way but let them walk themselves.

3. Encourage risk-taking and innovation.
Overly focus on rules, policies will kill creativity & innovation.
Allow staff to take certain level of risk to try out new things.
Allow them to take time off & provide support for such projects as well.

4. Stretch & challenge.
Most people want challenges & give it to them.
Set new standards & get them to take up the challenge.
Inject some fun and create an interesting workplace for everyone.

Networking that works - 10 tips

ref: Straits Times pg R33.

1. Before attending an event, think that you are going to spend 3 hours of your precious there, unpaid.. so better make full use of your time there.

2. Enjoy the process/event and have some fun!

3. Walk in, hold yr head up, pull yr shoulders back & smile with confidence. Just tell yourself most people are as nervous as you are there.

4. You are decent & likeable person. Believe in yourself and your expertise.

5. Plan to speak to 3 new people and gain 3 new info abt them. Identify people u wanted to meet and make sure you walk to them and intro yourself.

6. Remember that everyone's there to network. So rejection will be minimum.

7. If u meet someone who's rude & unpleasant, just move away. Focus on pleasant & welcoming folks.

8. Be interested in people than be just interesting. Let others do most of the talking while u listen attentively. Get to know them.

9. Small talk - abt travel, sports, family or hobbies.. It's the foundation of relationships.

10. Ask for their business cards and seek permission to contact them a few days later. Write down on agreed date on back of the card. As soon as you get home, write down the useful info & be prepared for the vital follow up call.

People First, Task Second

It took me many years before i realised the mistake of focusing too much on task.. Blame it on HP who started the Management By Objective concept. I took it as THE WAY..

Years on, once i was reading an article.. and this author wrote that first manage people's expectation, then manage the tasks. And bingo! i hit jackpot.. since then, i've overhauled my management belief system to People First, Tasks Second concept.

Following this, i now place talent or people management as my first/highest priority. You can never succeed in business without the assistance of your people. So, credits must be given to them.

Well, i understand that it's hard to talk abt people first when the work's fire is burning at your doorstep.. yes, it's difficult. But if you dont try or adopt such mindset, nothing's gonna happen. Bite the bullet, swallow the bitter pill.. and you will enjoy the fruit later on..

Blessings.

testing

5 theme leadership model

By Professor Roger Gill

Theme 1 - Leadership, Vision & Mission
Define and communicate an appealing vision & mission for your organisation.

Theme 2 - Leadership, Shared Values & Corporate Culture
Identify, display, promote & reinforce shared core values as part of developing a strong organisational culture that supports the vision and mission.

Theme 3 - Leadership and Strategy
Develop and implement intelligent business strategies that are informed by core values, scenario planning, and the vision & mission for your organisation.

Theme 4 - Leadership and Empowerment
Empower your people to be able to do what needs to be done in the organisation.

Theme 5 - Leadership and Influence, Motivation and Inspiration
Influence, motivation and inspire your people to want to do what needs to be done.

cuttlefish

A friend went diving took this picture of a cuttlefish.. never thought cuttlefish looks like this.. though i like eating them.. ;-)

life..

i've never know life as much as present.. all the places i've been.. all the people i've met.. all the rights as well as all the wrongs.. worst, plenty of grey.. blurs the line many a times.. Still, life goes on.. we have to be happy.. and happy is my goal. and happy in the right way i must.. not short term but with a long term view. it's tough i know. but it can be done. i've walked half my life. shall not leave the reminding half go to waste. i shall do things that's good for me. good for others. and hopefully serve a greater good. after working for so many years - over 17 years to be more exact. i realised it's not about business, processes and the tasks i've done that's most important..
i realised it's not about me. it's about others - people. it's about working with other people - staff, partners, customers,.. it's about leaveraging on one another's strength to accomplish things. So, now my focus is really talent management or simply people management. Developing others is my goal. my focus. mentoring has never been so important in my life. and i enjoy mentoring people. it's so fulfilling. but can be stressful as well.. as i'm mindful abt teaching the wrong things. thus, i constantly think about my life's principles.. so i wish for wisdom, patience, calmness & understanding.. ;-)

Bali holiday

cashew nuts

To be frank, i do like cashew nuts.. and i know it's quite expensive too.. but i never thought the nut or fruit looks like this.. like green pepper.. and no wonder it's expensive.. my friend told me that the whole fruit only produce one nut..

Tree Wizard Workshop

He is probably the only tree artist in Singapore! His passion & determination really inspire me. Please support his works!

tempura

How to make good batter for frying tempura prawns and other vegetables?

Tempura mixes you buy off the shelf may contain unnecessary additives. So make your own batter!
Basic proportion: 1 egg to about 140ml of icy-cold water to about 110g cake flour.
Some blend flour & cornstarch instead of just flour.

Beat egg with water until blended, then add flour & stir briefly with chopsticks until barely mixed. It should be lumpy. Small lumps of unmixed flour is fine - it gives a lighter, more open fried batter texture. Always add flour to water.. not the other way round.

There're many batter style.. alter flour, egg & water proportions to your liking..

Delicate items like fish & prawns need thin batter whereas thick onion & sweet potatoes suit thick batter.

For prawns, shell it & leaves tails shell on.. Make a shallow cut along the prawn's underside where the legs were - it prevents curl.. and pat it dry before frying.

Oil temperature around 180 deg C at which it shimmer & start to give off a light haze. Japanese restaurant used to add sesame oil to the cooking oil for frying to add fragrance.

Fry without overcrowding.. One 'making flowers' technique used in Japan is to use chopstick tips to dip into the batter and flick droplets onto the frying prawns to build up a lacy irregular crispy coat.

Lastly, eat immediately! Tempura, like any other fried food, sog out in as little as 30 minutes.

Birthday gal and the Bee

We hope she likes her birthday presents.. ;P

The main causes of liver damage are:

1. Sleeping too late and waking up too late are main cause.
2. Not urinating in the morning.
3. Too much eating.
4. Skipping breakfast.
5. Consuming too much medication.
6. Consuming too much preservatives, additives, food coloring , and artificial sweetener.
7. Consuming unhealthy cooking oil. As much as possiblereduce cooking oil use when frying, which includes even the best cooking oils like olive oil. Do not consume fried foods when you are tired,except if the body is very fit.
8. Consuming raw (overly done)foods also add to the burden of liver.
Veggies should be eaten raw or cooked 3-5 parts. Fried veggies should be finished in one sitting, do not store.

We should prevent this without necessarily spending more. We just have to adopt a good daily lifestyle and eating habits. Maintaining good eating habits and time condition are very important for our bodies to absorb and get rid of unnecessary chemicals according to 'schedule.'


Because :

Evening at 9 - 11 PM : is the time for eliminating unnecessary/toxic chemicals (detoxification) from the antibody system (lymph nodes). This time duration should be spent by relaxing or listening to music. If during this time a housewife is still in an unrelaxed state such as washing the dishes or monitoring children doing their homework, this will have a negative impact on health.

Evening at 11pm - 1 am : is the detoxification process in the liver, and ideally should be done in a deep sleep state.

Early morning 1 - 3 am : detoxification process in the gall, also ideally done in a deep sleep state.
Early morning 3 - 5 am : detoxification in the lungs. Therefore there will sometimes be a severe cough for cough sufferers during this time. Since the detoxification process had reached the respiratory tract, there is no need to take cough medicine so as not to interfere with toxin removal process.
Morning 5 - 7am : detoxification in the colon, you should empty your bowel.

Morning 7 - 9 am : absorption of nutrients in the small intestine, youshould be having breakfast at this time.Breakfast should be earlier, before 6:30 am , for those who are sick. Breakfast before 7:30 am is very beneficial to those wanting to stay fit. Those who always skip breakfast, they should change their habits, and it is still better to eat breakfast late until 9 - 10 am rather than no meal at all.

Sleeping so late and waking up too late will disrupt the process of removing unnecessary chemicals. Aside from that, midnight to 4:00 am is the time when the bone marrow produces blood. Therefore, have a good sleep and don't sleep late.

DO TAKE CARE ABOUT YOUR HEALTH.................

BRAIN DAMAGING HABITS

1. No Breakfast
People who do not take breakfast are going to have a lower blood sugar level.
This leads to an insufficient supply of nutrients to the brain causing brain degeneration.

2. Overeating
It causes hardening of the brain arteries, leading to a decrease in mental power.

3. Smoking
It causes multiple brain shrinkage and may lead to Alzheimer disease.

4. High Sugar consumption
Too much sugar will interrupt the absorption of proteins and nutrients causingmalnutrition and may interfere with brain development.

5. Air Pollution
The brain is the largest oxygen consumer in our body. Inhaling polluted air decreases the supply of oxygen to the brain, bringing about a decrease in brain efficiency.

6. Sleep Deprivation
Sleep allows our brain to rest. Long term deprivation from sleep will accelerate the death of brain cells.

7. Head covered while sleeping
Sleeping with the head covered, increases the concentration of carbon dioxide and decrease concentration of oxygen that may lead to brain damaging effects.

8. Working your brain during illness
Working hard or studying with sickness may lead to a decrease in effectiveness of the brain as well as damage the brain.

9. Lacking in stimulating thoughts
Thinking is the best way to train our brain, lacking in brain stimulation thoughts may cause brain shrinkage.

10. Talking Rarely
Intellectual conversations will promote the efficiency of the brain

ZOO visit